Honschar was strictly a poet before he was inspired by the chalk artist Francois Pelletier, who creates painstaking reproductions of classical art in sidewalk chalk. He started writing inspiring messages in 2000, and says his secret to success is "always keep it positive."

Honschar drew crowds as he chalked messages around Times Square and other New York sidewalks.

"I’m always a crowd stopper," he told TODAY. "People will stop in their tracks whatever they’re doing and they’ll kind of be in awe of the human typewriter. They’re always curious what the message will be. Usually I let them wait until I’m finished."